#we can do better and should continue to strive to do better! not be complacent!

[hiyyihrts]

“you have to work to earn your right to live in this world sorry that’s just the way things are and it’s never going to change.” we built this world from the ground up over thousands of years of toil and strife and have been through countless systems and societies built on the concepts of ideas and dreams for better lives. we can dismantle these systems brick by brick if we have to- the concept of there being no other option for life has never been inconceivable for the dedicated yearner and hope-seeker.

[cielomariel]

High Seas of Innovation: Lessons from "Pirates of Silicon Valley"

Ahoy, mateys! As a first-year IT student diving into the world of technology and innovation, I recently embarked on a cinematic voyage with "Pirates of Silicon Valley." This film is a gripping tale of the rise of tech giants Apple and Microsoft. It offers a treasure trove of lessons and insights that resonate deeply with anyone navigating the tumultuous waters of college life and beyond. Here's my take on the movie and how its quotes and situations can inspire us.

Unlocking Creativity

"Good artists copy, great artists steal." - Steve Jobs

From the get-go, "Pirates of Silicon Valley" introduces us to Steve Jobs and Bill Gates, two college dropouts who would revolutionize the tech industry. This quote by Jobs, though controversial, underscores a critical lesson: innovation often involves building on existing ideas. As a first-year student this encourages me not to shy away from seeking inspiration from others' work. It's about taking what exists and making it better, more unique, and more impactful.

The Power of Vision

"People who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do." - Steve Jobs

Jobs' relentless pursuit of his vision for Apple is a testament to the power of believing in oneself. As I struggle with balancing assignments, part-time work, and personal projects, this quote reminds me that ambition often requires a touch of madness. It's this audacity that drives innovation and progress. So, while my late-night coding marathons may seem insane, they could be the foundation for something extraordinary.

Sailing Against the Current

"It's better to be a pirate than to join the Navy." - Steve Jobs

This metaphorical piece of wisdom speaks to the rebellious spirit of entrepreneurship. Jobs' disdain for conventional corporate culture encourages us to embrace unconventional paths. However, the film also explores the ethical dilemmas that come with such a mindset. As students, we are often at a crossroads, deciding between following the beaten path or forging our own. This quote and the movie push us to question our choices: Are we ready to take risks? How far will we go to achieve our dreams?

The Dark Side of Success

"Success is a menace. It fools smart people into thinking they can't lose." - Bill Gates

Gates' words highlight the perils of becoming complacent after achieving success. Watching him and Jobs navigate their empires' highs and lows, I realize that the journey doesn't end with success; it requires constant vigilance and adaptation. Which means we must continuously learn, evolve, and stay humble no matter how many small victories come our way.

Friendships and Betrayals

The film delves into the complex relationships between Jobs, Wozniak, Gates, and Allen. These friendships, often strained by ambition and betrayal, remind me of the importance of trust and loyalty. College life is full of group projects and collaborations. Maintaining healthy relationships with peers is crucial, as these bonds can significantly impact our personal and professional growth.

The Drive for Perfection

"We're here to put a dent in the universe." - Steve Jobs

Jobs' ambition to create products that change the world is nothing short of inspiring. This quote fuels my desire to aim high and strive for excellence in everything I do. It's a reminder that our work can have a profound impact, and we should always aim to leave a lasting legacy.

Reflecting on My Journey

Watching "Pirates of Silicon Valley" has been enlightening. The movie's depiction of relentless innovation, ethical dilemmas, and the personal costs of ambition resonates deeply with my own experiences and aspirations. It challenges me to think critically about my goals, the risks I'm willing to take, and the values I hold dear.

As I try balancing the pressures of academics and personal growth, the stories of Jobs and Gates remind me that every great journey begins with a single step. Their successes and failures are a testament to the resilience and vision required to make a difference.

So, to my fellow students, let's embrace the spirit of these tech pioneers. Let's be bold, take risks, and strive to leave our dent in the universe. After all, in the words of the film, "The best way to predict the future is to invent it."

As you set sail on your journey, are you ready to be the captain of your own ship, exploring the uncharted waters, or will you remain anchored in the safety of the harbor?

[childofchrist1983]

As in the parable of the vineyard which we reflected upon last week, Jesus is again letting the chief priests and the Pharisees are not being found worthy of the promise. They failed to recognize the Son of God, and so, were unwilling to listen. The question being asked us is, "Will we be worthy?" We aren't being asked to save ourselves, only Jesus Christ can save us. All we need to do is repent, say "Thank you, LORD God!" and follow Him. We know what that means, but we can get complacent and lazy. We can fall into old habits. We can forget to pray. We can allow anger or jealousy into our hearts or fail to ask forgiveness or to forgive. There are so many little ways that we can begin to stray.

I am intentionally saying "we" because I am also guilty. There are people in my life that I consider "thorns" that I need to deal with and pray for. So, I know for a fact that it's not always easy! The closer they are, the more difficult it can sometimes be, because we tend to expect more from those who say they love us. Other times, it is the workplace or the neighborhood that can be difficult. I have been lucky to live a good portion of my life in an environment that was healthy for both me and my Christian faith. But other times, it could be challenging. As hard as we work at staying on the right path, there will be times when we are like the Centurion who approached Jesus to ask Him to heal his servant when he said, "O LORD, I am not worthy!" (Matthew 8:8). Although the Jewish leaders were not always ready to see Jesus Christ as the Messiah, there were others like the Centurion who were not Jews, who saw something special in Him and were more than willing to answer the invitation. Those of us who have said "Yes" to the invitation and follow Jesus Christ must continue to say that "Yes" with the quality of our lives. Thank Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ for the invitation to His banquet that awaits us in His Kingdom of Heaven! May He help us to be made worthy by the way we follow Him and His will and way of love in our daily lives. May He humble our hearts and help us focus on following and serving Him daily and helping others with joy and happiness. We lift our voices in praise to Him for His love, mercy, peace, faithfulness and grace. - For EVERYTHING!

It is vital that we remain rooted in Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ through prayer and His Holy Word and Spirit and that we live and walk as a beacon of His light and love and share and spread the Gospel Truth daily, so that the lost souls in this world can come to know Him and be saved. The more we focus on Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ, growing spiritually by building our relationship with Him, leaning on Him and His Holy Word and Spirit, the better off we will be. Thanks to this and our faith in Him, we know that everything will be alright. And we will forever be grateful to Him. As true and born-again Christians, we believe in Him and His Holy Word and we strive daily to walk in His Holy Spirit. We know though our mortal bodies should die, He will raise us up and into new and glorious bodies (The Rapture). We who are truly His and alive at His second coming will never die, and our bodies will be changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, and so shall we ever be with Him in His Kingdom of Heaven forevermore (1 Corinthians 15:51-52, 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17). This is one of many promises given to us by God Himself. Thank God for His strength and guidance when we are faced with sin and temptation. Thank Him for His mercy and grace. Through Bible study and prayer, God reveals His wisdom and guides us to see opportunities to grow closer to Him and grow spiritually. He gives us direction to live our lives daily according to His will.

Jesus Christ is the ONLY way to Heaven (John 3:5, 14:6), the ONLY way to salvation (Acts 4:12, Ephesians 2:8-9) and He is the resurrection and the life (John 11:25-26). Jesus Christ the LORD of lords, KING of kings, the GOD of gods (Deuteronomy 10:17, 1 Timothy 6:15, Revelation 17:14, Revelation 19:16) - He is the Living, Almighty and Everlasting God (Isaiah 9:6, Revelation 1:8, John 3:16, John 3:36, Jeremiah 10:10). There is no other God besides Him (Isaiah 45:5). We MUST humble ourselves before Him, turning our backs on false teachers, false gods and idols and our sinful ways. We MUST repent and turn back to God and recognize who He is and love Him in return for His great love for us. We MUST make God top priority everyday! May we be motivated to spread God's Holy Word and Gospel Truth to all the Earth, knowing that it is the only hope of all those lost in their sins. Let us not hold out a false hope for men to be saved without the Gospel, but instead, strive to do our part to get the Gospel out to a lost and dying world.

Leaning on Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ through prayer and His Holy Word and Spirit strengthens us and our knowledge and wisdom about God and His Gospel Truth, exposing these imposters. May God help us to seek and lean on Him daily to gain the strength, wisdom and spiritual discernment needed to expose Satan and his imposters who seek to destroy us and God's ultimate Truth. Everyday, we must remember to share Jesus Christ's Gospel Truth with the world and to thank Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ for the grace that He poured out for us on the cross at Calvary. He has freed us from the burdens of sin and from the eternal damnation of Hell. In all we say and do, may all praise, honor and glory always be given to Him and His Kingdom of Heaven.

With renewed minds, hearts and wills, let us serve Him humbly and faithfully out of pure love and grateful rejoicing. May He remind us of His presence and to remain at peace, fully knowing that all will be well because He is always with us. Let us seek Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ today and everyday with all our heart and being, looking for His love, light and will for our lives with each step we take. Let us seek to please Him with our thoughts, words, and deeds and seek to advance His Kingdom of Heaven and His glory with our lives. Let us seek Him from a pure and humble heart, and when we so seek, we believe Him and His promise that we will find. May He help us all to be more sensitive to the teaching ministry of His Holy Word and Spirit, relying on Him and allowing Him to speak to us and guide us every step of our Christian journey.

God gave us the Holy Bible - His living and Holy Word - to let us know of Him and His abiding love and care as well as guide and prepare us for all our lives. May He help us encourage one another as we continue our walk with Him and our duty to Him daily. Thank Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ for being present for all our new beginnings and all our lives. May He redirect any anxiety we feel as He provides countless opportunities for growth and change. May we humble ourselves before God always, asking Him to forgive our sins and make our hearts and lives anew through His Holy Word and Spirit. May He help us make Him and His Holy Word top priority, so we can grow spiritually and grow in our relationship with Him as we apply it to our daily lives. Thank God that we can focus on Him and everything about Him, for that is what keeps us sane and at peace. May our words and actions always be a reflection of Him and His Holy Word and Spirit and will.

May He help us to always walk in His grace and Holy Spirit, not by our own measure. May He give us the humble humility to know that our freedom and eternal salvation is found only in Him, so that His grace may sustain us, and we may never lose sight of His love and light and mercy. Thank Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ for calling us to Him and to serve Him. May He equip us to do all that He has called us to do so that as He works through us, He may use us to produce fruit, to reach others, and to encourage all brothers and sisters in Christ. May He work all of these things in us and through us for His Kingdom and His glory. Thank Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ for all His creation, for His miraculous ways and for everything He does and has done for us! Keep the faith and keep moving forward in your walk with Jesus! He loves us and He knows what is best for us. Seek, follow and trust in Him - Always!

Thank Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ for His Holy Word and for sending His Holy Spirit so that we might have His grace, not only to awaken us and transform our hearts in our spiritual rebirth and guarantee our eternity with Him, but to also call upon Him whenever we are in need. Thank Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ for all the reminders of His love and mercy and faithfulness within His Holy Word. He is bigger than any challenge or circumstance in our lives. Knowing this within our minds and our hearts, nothing can deter our faith in Him and His Truth. May we all accept Him and His eternal gift of salvation and ask that He would transform our hearts and lives according to His will and ways. Thank Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ for His Holy Spirit who saves, seals and leads us. May we always thank Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ for His almighty power and saving grace. For He is our strength, and He alone is able to save us, forgive our sins and gift us eternal salvation and entry into His Kingdom of Heaven.

May we make sure that we give our hearts and lives to God and take time to seek and praise Him and share His Truth with the world daily. May the LORD our God and Father in Heaven help us to stay diligent and obedient and help us to guard our hearts in Him and His Holy Word daily. May He help us to remain faithful and full of excitement to do our duty to Him and for His glorious return and our reunion in Heaven as well as all that awaits us there. May we never forget to thank the LORD our God and our Creator and Father in Heaven for all this and everything He does and has done for us! May we never forget who He is, nor forget who we are in Christ and that God is always with us! What a mighty God we serve! What a Savior this is! What a wonderful LORD, God, Savior and King we have in Jesus Christ! What a loving Father we have found in Almighty God! What a wonderful God we serve! His will be done!

Thanks and glory be to God! Blessed be the name of the LORD! Hallelujah and Amen!

[wildxcardrebel]

@fatexbound

"That's because I believed in your dream. The way your eyes light up every time you talk about it tells me it is your calling. People should be able to do what they love as their lot in life. Passion is so important in the grand scheme of things." Ren remarked, keeping his focus on her as they continued to drive. "Haru... I don't want you to think that you don't have a choice when it comes to fighting alongside us. It's always your decision. Remember that."

"There's a difference between stopping terrible people abusing their power and literally making everyone's choices for them. Besides, a life without pain and grief...that isn't a real life. It's stripping away an essential part of the human experience. It's the worst feeling, but without it, we'd never move forward, stuck in a stagnant state of complacency. Maruki always focused on the ideal but didn't consider the effects it would have on the world."

The younger of the pair paused. "Sorry, didn't mean to go on a tangent. It's just that, I want to make the world better, there's some inevitabilities that need to happen. It's just how the universe works. We can still strive to minimize the bad, but it won't ever truly leave." He put his hand over his face, slightly embarrassed. "Dammit, I rambled again."

Finally staying quiet for a moment to gather his thoughts, Ren nodded his head. "I just hope he's doing alright, wherever he is... Ah, over there. You see the sign?" He asked Haru, gesturing toward their current destination.

@wildxcardrebel

"That's right! To be honest, you are the one who encouraged me to go along with that idea and make a silly little dream come true. I now realize that it's... so much more than that. It might be my calling in life, next to fighting with you when it's necessary." She wished all this fighting would stop for a little while, and give herself a much-needed break to focus on more important matters.

Haru frowned a bit, thinking about what Ren had to say, and nodded. "Yes, it was... wrong. I was ecstatic to see my father alive again. He was oddly caring and willing to go along with whatever I said. Unlike the real one... it was so bizarre, I couldn't wrap my head around it. However, I am glad Maruki-san changed careers. It's probably for the best." When the light turned green, she moved along the road like normal.

[itsclydebitches]

It might be the 2020 talking here, but the Mantle citizens being oppressed feels less like the fascism claim that gets thrown around and more like anti maskers angry at not being allowed to go outside and get eaten by grimm in retrospect. Power outage? I'll just go outside where I know the grimm are while in a bad mood instead of my home that has insulation, barricades, and/or a fireplace. Nothing can go wrong with that idea. Destroy those anti grimm robots too! We won't need those in a minute!

The issue with those “This is a fascism/police brutality allegory” arguments (despite the fact that it’s pretty clear RT wants that to be the interpretation. Here I’m talking about what we actually get on screen, not what the authors my have intended to create) is twofold: 

1. They fail to acknowledge the grimm as an objective, immediate, 100% indisputable threat that if not addressed will lead to the killing/eating of the populace. Unlike the various bigoted complexities surrounding the claim that other people are a threat to the populace in our real world, the grimm have no ethical questions attached to either the danger they present or how they should be dealt with. They will kill you. You should shoot them. That’s that. RWBY’s grimm have not been constructed as representations of misunderstood minorities/outsiders—they’re literal monsters and thus any precautions taken to keep them from attacking you is weighted towards being a good thing. (The caveat: Provided any technologies created in the pursuit of safety are not so deadly that they pose a threat to the people if they fall into the wrong hands which, as we’ve seen in RWBY’s story, is something Salem managed beautifully. There are ethical questions attached to when the “This may pose a threat later” outweighs “But it’s helpful right now,” but that’s not the issue we’re covering today. This is a “Yes there are grimm and yes you should take extreme measures to protect yourself because they are 1000% a deadly threat” acknowledgement).    

2. They fail to acknowledge that RWBY hasn’t done the work of showing how these measures are hurting the people. The embargo hurts them economically, absolutely, but that’s a separate issue from the military control Ironwood keeps over the kingdom in response to the grimm/Salem — the presumed oppression we’re discussing. When we talk about that kind of control in real life we acknowledge the very real repercussions it has, everything from “The armed forces in our streets resorted to shooting at us when we peacefully protested their presence” to “The armed forces in the streets deny us basic human rights.” In the real world measures like these are a threat, but we see none of this in RWBY. Are Ironwood’s forces maliciously attacking people without cause, demonstrating that their protection may not be worth the harm they cause? No. We just see them doing their job of fighting grimm, allowing civilians to escape in the process. Are they denying the people their right to go about their lives peacefully? No. The people we see are not hindered by these safety measures. There are only two details I can think of to potentially support this: the bot that takes pictures of the group without their consent (which in 2020 would work better as a commentary on big corporations/privacy concerns in the digital age) and the fact that the people aren’t allowed to go out late at night... but that just circles right back around to Point #1: there are monsters out on those streets that want to kill you. Things like RWBY’s curfew aren’t implemented as a way of hindering protesters and silencing people—as they have been in the real world—but as a very basic “It’s harder to keep you alive at night so please stay in your homes to not get eaten.” 

So though I’m always wary of drawing perfect 1:1 comparisons between the text and a real event (as you say, anon, there’s some 2020 feelings attached to all this lol)... yeah, I’d agree that how the show presents this conflict is much closer to our current Covid situation: 

Government: You’re not allowed outside right now, you need to wear a mask, there’s no travel, no gatherings larger than ten people 

People: You can’t do that! This is an infringement on my rights! You’re trying to keep me docile and complacent... can’t everyone see what’s happening? The government is trying to tell us what to do. Every modern action movie has taught you that’s automatically a bad, scary thing! 

Government: No I’m... trying to keep you from spreading/catching a deadly virus, which can only happen if everyone obeys some — at times very tough — but still necessary rules. This is logic you should have learned in kindergarten. Everyone needs to work together and clean up the play area, even if they don’t want to, so that someone doesn’t trip over a toy. Except now ‘Oops I’ve tripped’ is ‘Oops I’m dead/in need of a transplant/chronically ill for an undetermined length of time.’” 

People: This is anarchy 

Government: It’s really not. It’s just a shitty situation that you’re refusing to help make better

Fans who reduce Volume 7 to “Ironwood is evil for making Mantle do things they obviously hate” fundamentally don’t understand—or simply refuse to acknowledge—the kind of threat these characters face. It’s indeed similar to looking at something like this 

(Source) 

and insisting on interpreting it as a poor woman being tortured under the laws of her government. “Military in the streets” has downsides attached to it (even if RWBY fails to accurately show them) in a similar way to how “Getting a swab stuffed up into what feels like your brain” has downsides too... but those downsides have to be weighed against the reason for these procedures existing in the first place: grimm and Covid. 

Oh. These downsides are better than dying. 

There’s nothing wrong with continually striving to lessen those downsides, as well as continually questioning authority in an effort to ensure that the power they hold isn’t abused... but we can’t let those fears blind us to the fact that sometimes horrible events require less than stellar solutions. At least for a time. The entire point here is the reasons behind why these actions were taken and whether their implementation remains necessary. An army among civilians due to racism and corrupt officials is not comparable to an army among civilians due to a continuous attack by literal monsters. An army that remains long after it’s necessary is not comparable to an army used during the height of a fantasy war. The ill-considered argument of “The Mantle people are oppressed because they are forced to live alongside robots and they don’t like it” does indeed have similarities with something like, “The people are oppressed because they are forced to wear masks and they don’t like it.” In both cases the consequences of obeying these orders (as shown in RWBY) are incredibly minimal and the benefit provided is staggering. It admittedly doesn’t help that Ironwood’s presumed oppression of Mantle is conflated with the severe class disparity and racism — things that are embedded into Atlas’ history and are mostly outside of his control— but the overall takeaway is that the knee-jerk response of “You can’t tell me what to do” should never outweigh the initial questions of, “Why do you want me to do this? What are the downsides of doing this? And are they worse than the repercussions attached to not doing this?” In the case of both “Trying to protect civilians from endless grimm/a magically powered queen” and “Trying to protect people from a truly horrifying virus,” these questions have some very compelling answers. 

Basically, 

[lesboylink]

Don’t be sorry this is a really good addition!

We understand RWBY had a lot of limitations, we see Legend of Korra this way (not a 1 for 1 comparison) as it did have the network screw it over multiple times. I think Legend of Korra could have been a better show, but was a fantastic show especially within the hurdles it had to go through.

We also know unfortunately that RWBY was a victim of a really bad corporation that to our knowledge rushed the creators itself, and just treated the creators as expendable. I don’t know all the details and don’t want to uphold the creators as do no wrong, because we ourselves don’t really know the behind the scenes, but I do think too many in the fandom saw them as 100% complacent with the company. Which I don’t think is a good thing to do.

It’s like when people have said to boycott Pixar movies, because their involvement with Disney, even tho there are many people who work in Pixar who are trying to make a living, and striving for good changes in our media. That maybe we should continue to support their works and not let them go in vain, it’s not a black and white situation, and it can be quite compliacted.

I’m learning to re-love RWBY all over again, and trying not to be so pretentious of a person who feels like they can only like subjectively “good media.” I have a lot of issues with the show itself, especially its racism plot lines with Blake and the White Fang.

However I think it means a lot to us after all this time, because we watched it with my sister and lover (we were only just really close friends at the time hehe) in summer break. There were only 5 Volumes at the time and RWBY Chibi. It was one of the happiest times in our life.

I also love the main girls so much, and personally disagree with comments that say they aren’t written well. If anything I think they are some of the strongest aspects of the show. It isn’t perfect as some characters are unfortunately tied to the White Fang, but they do have other things going for them. In short I’d defend these girls just like any other female character that gets too much unnecessary hate. Especially when they *checks notes* are openly queer, and are dealing with PTSD in a way people don’t like (ain’t that always how it is)

I also just like that this started off as just a fun little project amongst friends. Not a lot of people get to achieve their goal of creating a show, and they just went and did that. I also find the way the first 3 volumes look very charming and nostalgic.

I could make a whole in depth video essay about this franchise if we wanted to, maybe someday..

Oh yeah and I can’t believe we momentarily forgot, but this series was so important for our queer journey. Seeing those few Bumbleby Scenes in Volume 2, and seeing that 2 of the most popular pairings in the fandom were sapphic definitely awakened something in us.

[rigelspride]

Interview

Gloved fingers slide beneath woolen collar and pull it back from his heated neck. Today the national costume of his motherland clings and chafes. It's not the raven-black armor of his generalship; it doesn't imprison his vulnerability within solid metal, nor does it keep weakness enclosed and hidden. Instead it leaves him exposed to eyes of judgment not unlike those of the Rigelian court, of his disappointed countrymen. Of his uncle. His head, too, feels bare without the cool weight of a circlet over his ears. He is neither prince nor Emperor's nephew here. The status granted by his birth offers little distinction amidst a sea of students from similar lineages. He is... nobody. For better or worse.

"Berkut," calls the interviewer from the doorway. How strange and naked his name sounds without its usual fixtures. But still his shoulders square, his chin lifts, and he turns from the grand arched window overlooking the courtyard with a smile that is as charming as it is proud. Dark eyes lower once toward the monk's unadorned slippers then rise again with a new hue of disdain.

"You've kept me waiting." His voice is a sonorous baritone, for now lightly amused.

"My apologies," answers the monk with a bow, and shows Berkut into the room. The door closes with a soft click behind them, and Berkut assumes a place on the sofa without need of direction or permission. He settles into the stiff cushions, one elbow finding the armrest while the other comes to drape across the curved back, and adopts the image of perfect ease. This is his room. His interview. And he watches the monk gather papers across his desk with the same judgment he had feared would find him instead. Briefly, their eyes meet, and the monk fumbles his quill.

"Well then," he clears his throat. "Shall we begin?"

"Spare me these formalities." Berkut waves a hand dismissively. "My time is precious, you know. Get on with it."

"Er... very well. What has led you to where you are today?"

"Ambition," he answers without skipping a beat. "The blood of kings runs through my veins, but leadership awarded for that alone is the road to complacency."

Green flits across his mind's eye. A birthmark. A boy unfit for a throne. Memories infuse his mask with a smugness that twists his easy smile to bare teeth; each word as he continues harbors edges as sharp as knives:

"It is not enough to be equal to my forebears -- I must surpass them to be worthy of my homeland."

"What do you believe are your greatest strengths?"

"Where to begin?" The shadow slips away under cover of a playful smile, but guardedness remains in discerning eyes. "I am unmatched on the battlefield. At sixteen, my skill was formally recognized by His Majesty the Emperor and I became one of the youngest in my country to be awarded the title of general."

Being a nobody means that Alm is, too, and Berkut finds words easily for the fantasy he spins. Here, he has the freedom to craft his own history. The life where Alm never existed, never beat him. The history of an unparalleled leader that should have been his own. Appraising eyes watch eagerly for a surprised gape, an impressed lift of eyebrows, an awe-filled glance, but the monk simply continues writing. Smile sets into a sharp line, impatience slips out in a quiet huff, but Berkut continues on anyway.

"Learning comes naturally to me as well." Haughty smile creeps back across his lips as his eyes glance away in recollection. "As a child, I exhausted my tutors with the speed at which I devoured their materials. I pray the academy's professors can keep up with me."

"And your weaknesses?" asks the interviewer without pause.

Berkut frowns. "You would look upon such perfection and think it blighted? Next question."

The monk hums softly, but does as he's told: "This is the last one. If a story were to be written about your life, what role would you play?"

Laughter bursts forth scornful and incredulous. "Need you even ask?" But his expression grows stormy, rumbling the seams of his composure, and his fingers tap - index, middle, ring, then back again - against the polished wood of the couch's arm. "The hero, of course. The brave conqueror. The vanquisher of gods and false kings."

The itch of mended scars crawls up the length of his right arm, unsettled by his impatient tapping. Memories lurk beneath glove and sleeve. Reminders of his failing. His defeat. His weakness. And the impossibility of that for which he strives. He drags his hand close, pulls it into his lap, and then stands abruptly.

"You've gotten what you need from me now?"

"Well, ye--"

"Good. This was a fine diversion, Monk, but I grow tired of this chatter." He waits for the man to stand and offer a hesitant, confused bow before turning on his heel and making for the door. "In the event that you've overlooked something in that mess of documentation on your desk, you will find me in the training hall. Good day."

[wolfpawn]

I Hate You, I Love You Chapter 106

Chapter Summary -   Danielle hears out what Lucas has to say, but she is unsure should she continue working with him. On a call to Tom, she explains an offer Lucas put to her.

Previous Chapter

Rating - Mature (some chapters contain smut)

Triggers - references to Tom Hiddleston’s work with the #MeToo Movement. That chapter will be tagged accordingly.

authors Note - I have been working on this for the last 3 years, it is currently 180+ chapters long.  This will be updated daily, so long as I can get time to do so, obviously.

All image rights belong to their owners

tags: @sweetkingdomstarlight-blog @jessibelle-nerdy-mum @nonsensicalobsessions @damalseer @hiddlesbitch1 @winterisakiller @fairlightswiftly @salempoe @wolfsmom1

If you wish to be tagged, please let me know.

Danielle sat across from Lucas, looking at him with her arms folded.

‘I owe you an apology.’ Lucas began. Danielle’s brow rose. ‘I owe you a huge apology, what I said was rude, condescending and misogynistic, I was the one to recommend you to Brannagh, based on my experience with your work, you had that job regardless because of your own merit, to even suggest otherwise was wrong, I’m sorry.’

‘Why do it?’

‘I was simply curious. It came out wrong.’

She gave a cold bark of a laugh. ‘If I asked you did you bring your wife with you to meet me because you can’t keep it in your pants, would you be offended, would you be hurt by that implication?’

‘Of course.’

‘I never thought that, for the record, but that is how it felt, I know it was implying “Getting a job for who I am with” but it felt how I would assume that feels to imply that.’

‘I am sorry, Danielle.’ Lucas repeated. When she said nothing more, he continued. ‘I hope we can work passed this and continue on this project, if you still wish to.’

‘I traveled thousands of miles for this, I could be at home with my dog and friends, or in Atlanta with Tom as he worked on one of the biggest movies to hit the cinema next year, but I came here, I traveled at stupid o’clock in the morning, after studying my ass off, to help with this, I am not here on anyone’s merit but my own. I work damn hard and even though, yes, you suggested me to Brannagh, I cannot argue that, but we both know it is because I work my ass off and I am good at my job.’

‘You are great at it. Branagh told me about what you spoke about at the meeting.’ Lucas acknowledged. ‘I promise, no more demeaning comments, I should never have implied what I did in the first place. You are right, your partner and Branagh know each other for over ten years.’

‘Branagh was the one to suggest Thor and Loki to him, they worked on Wallander before that. They have been ten plus years talking about a play together, so yeah, when the chance arose for Tom and him to have a lunch, why not go, it also alleviated my terror at such a meeting.’ Danielle commented.

‘It makes sense.’ Lucas cleared his throat. ‘Is there a possibility of you continuing to work on this?’ He broached.

Danielle pursed her lips. ‘I was planning on flying straight home, by sheer luck, or perhaps twist of faith, whatever you believe in, I accidentally rang Tom, who badgered me to say what was bothering me and actually, for as insulting as those comments are to him also, he told me to hear you out, to come down here and talk to you.’

‘I should thank him for that much.’ Lucas acknowledged. The manner in which she looked at him caused him to sigh. ‘It doesn’t matter though, does it, you’re not willing to forgive my error.’

‘I don’t have to forgive you to be able to work with you.’ she pointed out.

‘It leads to a very frosty work relationship though, doesn’t it?’

‘Yes, but not an unworkable one.’

‘I am sorry, Danielle.’

‘So you have said.’

Lucas leant back. ‘I bet you would burst his balls if he tried to play you in any way.’

‘No, because he would not be stupid enough to try. I know Tom for years and that means he knows me longer than our relationship, he knows how I am. He doesn’t like meek women who allow men dictate to them. If he did, I would think he had chosen very badly in his choosing of me.’

‘I agree.’ Lucas chuckled.

Danielle folded her arms. ‘Why are you eager to still have me involved in this?’

‘Are you asking in general?’

‘No, I love ego boosts.’ She replied sarcastically. ‘I am asking because I want to know. I want to know why you left your office to follow me back to my hotel and try and make up for what you said. Is it because you felt that what you said was wrong? Or was it because you want me back on the project?’

‘Both, I should never have implied such a thing to you.’ He began, ‘But also because, out of the three other people that are working on this with me, I am of the opinion that you are the most integral part of getting this done. Jones stayed eight hours yesterday, Khan stayed ten, you arrived before seven in the morning and remained there until nearly midnight, you are the most organised and everything you readied...did you even bring clothes with you or did you just bring your research?’ Lucas half laughed in disbelief. ‘You are, by far, the most dedicated member of the team, I don’t know if it is you in general or the hunger that most people I work with have lost because they are complacent now they have made it, but you just go above and beyond with everything you do. If I am honest, I want part in it.’ Danielle’s brow furrowed. ‘You are going to do great in the industry, the blind could see that, and you will be offered partnerships in several firms, I want to establish a foot in the door now, when you are on the up, because I want to have an edge, same as every business person, I want it that you know you should consider my offer when the time is right.’

‘You want me to feel like I owe you?’

‘No, you owe no one, you do the work, I just want it that you see that though my company is smaller than others, it is better than a lot of the big ones, directors know that, and though the work is not as plentiful, it is of a higher quality, so profits are not as high, but the name is worth more, adding your name to that, the pioneer of the new era of safety, it would make it one of the strongest names. You took my, what the industry took to be flawless work, and shattered it, you are now here making it bigger and better than I ever could, can’t you see, that is why I need you to consider staying.’

Danielle kissed her teeth and thought over his words for a few moments. ‘So I should consider staying...to make you look better?’

Lucas shook his head. ‘No, you asked why I am so eager for you to stay, that is what I get from this, what you need to consider staying for are what it will do for you.’

‘What will it do for me?’

Lucas knew from the look on her face, Danielle had analysed his words and already came to a conclusion as to just how lucrative it could be for her to stay. ‘I have just told you that you are going to be offered partnerships if you keep going like this, already people are asking, Khan works with Universal, they are looking for people constantly.’ He admitted.

‘I am not moving over.’

‘I know you don’t want to, they will offer serious incentive.’

‘They cannot offer me what I want, money is not something I am too bothered by, I have no mortgage to pay, I am happy with my car, I am not bothered by fashion and my dog has a bed that cost fifteen pounds that he doesn’t seem overly interested in changing.’

Lucas chuckled again. ‘So money is not your objective?’

‘I want money, everyone wants money, I want to have everything I need and be able to afford things I want.’

‘What are your main objectives?’

‘I want to work for me, I want to be the one calling the shots, not having some man in an office order me around. I want it that if I decide to have kids, I do not have to sacrifice either my job or them, I want to be able to do both. I want to buy out the other half of my grandmother’s home and I want that I don’t ever need to depend on someone else to look after me.’ She listed out.

‘Those are highly attainable objectives.’

‘Yes, I’m not an idiot, I am not going through life being stupid enough to set myself up to fail. I can fail at anything I strive to achieve, I know, but purposely setting up to do so is just plain idiocy. I am not afraid to fail, I don’t want to, but I can handle it if I do.’

‘And Tom?’

‘The plan, as it stands is to be with him. We both want roughly the same things, one of which is to not move here. I hope it remains like that.’

‘You are both risking jobs by not doing that.’

‘Do you miss Australia?’

‘Yes, all my family is there, but my work is here.’

‘Would you move back?’

‘I wish I could.’

‘You can, you are not brave enough to, you are too scared of what you are risking.’ Danielle shrugged.

‘Perhaps.’ Lucas acknowledged.

‘So, even without this job, I am being noticed, I am being sought out, you are seriously not doing a good job at convincing me to bother staying.’

‘Name your price.’

‘I’ll tell you what I told Tom on the phone, I rather work in Subway dishing out sandwiches than be unhappy. Money never made me happy.’

‘What would convince you to stay?’

‘I am not sure, to be honest.’ She rose to her feet, ‘Give me until evening, if I think of something, or indeed nothing, I will let you know.’

Lucas was forced to concede. ‘Either way, you’ll let me know?’

‘Either way.’ she confirmed.

* Tom looked at his phone after doing his time on set for the day, he was waiting for the makeup and costume departments to remove him from his clothes and wig. He did not know if he should contact Danielle but worried for her, he pressed the call button.

‘Hey.’ She sounded exhausted.

‘Hello Elle, how are you darling?’

‘I need sleep, but I have been lying here for an hour and it is eluding me.’

‘You poor thing. Did you speak with Lucas?’

‘Yeah, I did. How was work?’

‘It was fine. What happened?’

‘We spoke, he apologised and asked for me to continue working with him, I told him I would take time and consider it.’

‘Really? Do you know what you want to do?’

‘To be honest, the only thing I want to do is sleep, but that’s not happening. Jetlag is evil.’ She rambled. ‘He said to name my price.’

‘Wow, what did you say to that?’

‘I don’t get inspired by stupid sums of money.’

‘That’s true.’

‘Besides, he informed me that some people are talking about me, people I want to be talking about me.’

‘Really, that’s incredible.’ Tom smiled.

‘Yeah, so I told him I would think about it.’

‘And he was okay with that?’

‘Apparently.’

‘What are you going to do?’

‘I’m just thinking about it.’

‘Do you want to do it?’

‘Part of me thinks no, the other part…the other part is looking at the contract Lucas sent over a half hour ago.’

‘What is it for?’

‘Twenty percent share in his company, if I sign a five year deal.’

‘Wait, what?’

‘I would be in charge of all European business, have my own office in London with staff, dictate my own jobs, and a twenty percent share of all profits, as well as a fairly adequate salary, but I have to do this project, of which I will be credited my share as submitted by me and I have a chance to buy in more, should I feel inclined, or sell my share, either back to Lucas or independently as I see fit at the end of the contract.’

‘Fucking hell.’ Tom laughed, his hand going through his hair. ‘That’s...how have you managed to do this all under a year?’

‘I am just that good.’ Danielle grinned.

‘Elle, I am so happy for and proud of you. Do you think you are going to take it?’

‘I am not sure, I am signing myself into working with people for five years.’

‘Can you move past what Lucas said?’

‘Well, I’m not going to be rushing off to tell him my personal business in the next twenty minutes.’

‘But you can bear working with him?’

‘Well, the office is in London, no more going around and staying in crappy B and B’s in Manchester, there’s a lot I could bear for that, and now I will have pretty much just conference calls with him, if I take it, since he runs the US and Asian parts of his company, I would be the European expansion.’

‘And Branagh’s project?’

‘Well, I was lead on that anyway.’

‘But you’re uncertain, about the offer.’

‘Yes.’

‘Why so?’ There was silence. ‘Elle?’

‘I am not whoring my integrity for an office job.’

‘Is it that, or is it getting what you deserve, what you have said you have wanted all along, the plan you had, how you could be able to settle in London full time, how in time, we might...?’

‘You are seriously no help. What do you…’

‘I cannot answer that Elle.’ Tom stated immediately.

‘I am not asking you to choose for me, I am asking you your opinion.’

‘I don’t know if I can give it, I do not want to influence you.’

‘Tom, if we are supposed to be doing this, us, then when I ask for your opinion, it is because I want it, not because I need it.’

‘Honestly, I think…’ Tom looked at his phone, realising the battery had died. ‘Shit.’

In LA, Danielle lay looking at her phone for a moment before laughing and typing a text to Tom.

That is the most inconvenient dead battery in the history of my life. She typed and pressed send, hoping he had his charger with him as she contemplated the offer.

[conchabae]

Greta Thunberg and Friday’s 4 Future

"I don't care about being popular. I care about climate justice."

This statement by Greta Thunberg is very powerful. Every generation has had youth that to some extent like the idea of and strive for success, fame and power, but these aspirations have been warped and are all too important amongst our younger generations today. This is directly linked to the nature of internet culture and social media which profits and promotes extreme beauty ideals, materialistic possessions and expressions of grandeur alongside a fixation on followers, likes and the analytics of online “popularity”. Yet, we still have cultural norms that view the youngest in society as the progressives, those who are responsible for shifting and building a better tomorrow. Many Western teens today spend their free-time on beauty tutorials, fashion and other forms of entertainment. There’s beauty in that Greta Thunberg, a well-off Swedish white girl, who could turn a blind eye to injustices in the world, fights to unlearn and speak up against climate injustice. In addition, she fights to spread awareness and put pressure on global governments to make needed systemic change. Greta claims she doesn't care about being popular, because she clearly does not do this for being liked and famous, she knows that fighting for climate justice and sustainability is not popular or “trendy”, she does it because it is what she cares about, and because it is right.

It is because of her honesty and dedication, that she has moved and awaken millions of other western people. Ironically, she has become an iconic and famous figure for defending the environment. It is admirable that even with a platform which has received millions of followers, praise from celebrities, as well as invites from famous politicians, she has never given up her principles to become more likable and her message stays the same, even when it is uncomfortable to those who know they do not do enough for the earth.

I did not live in NYC last year, but there was a climate strike in Foley Square in 2019 as well as strikes all across the world. I was inspired by Greta’s movement and participated in the school strike for climate in Stockholm. It was amazing to see so many people of all different backgrounds and ages participating in the city’s center to hear climate activists and my friends and I boycotted school to support the Friday’s 4 Future campaign.

The long term dedication and commitment movements like Friday’s 4 Future and Black Lives Matter have shown for years now, have woken me up to my complacency to my reality, when it does not align with the world I want to live in. I was 13 years old when the Black Lives Matter hashtag and conversation started. I was 18 when Greta Thunberg started striking for the climate. I realize now that it is not only the people we see highlighted in the news who can make important change, it is all of us. Greta Thunberg’s book No One Is Too Small To Make A Difference, really was a wakeup call on how climate change, which is inevitable with our current ways, is a crisis and an urgent issue that can only be resolved by facing it head on.

 Photos from the Stockholm strike taken by: Lotta Fernvall / AFTONBLADET

These are a selection of a few photos taken at the global Climate Strike in 2019, but these are all taken in front of the Swedish parliament, where the movement began. It is surreal how people in the thousands came to join her on this historical global strike in her home country and all over the world, when she started striking all by herself at this exact spot. Greta Thunberg has been the catalyst for heightened awareness and care about climate justice.

I think many people, including Greta Thunberg herself in the trailer for her Hulu documentary, attribute her hyper focus on the reality and danger of climate change to her having Asperger’s syndrome. While a common symptom of Asperger’s syndrome is to have an “obsessive” interest in a particular subject, I do think we should not dismiss her drive, passion and heart in climate justice just to her condition. Greta’s ability to push against her discomfort with social networking, to perform speeches in front of millions, and exchange awkward pleasantries with powerful public figures to access their platform, shows huge amounts of bravery and heart. It is a character strength that she has tunnel vision on the science of climate change and carbon emissions, and this helps her continue to educate herself on the topic. This is something that many of us locals do not show interest in, especially since most of the information is clouded in complicated and exclusionary scientific language, often in lengthy journals.

She does not just care about the environment for the knowledge, she wants to save the world, and save future generation’s right to fulfilling and happy lives. I have so much respect for her and trust in her intentions, and as Greta has said herself, she does not struggle with Asperger’s, she has it. Her journey to activism and contributions to the world should not be pigeon holed or minimized by her condition.

The COVID-19 pandemic, which has forced us all to experience a different state than our regular normal, has made it more clear than ever, that many of our customs and way of life are not sustainable. As the prevalence of police brutality and other systems of oppression are harder to ignore, I think we all are becoming more aware of daily injustices. In the first months of quarantine in Europe, reports were showing photographic evidence that wildlife and ecosystems were improving and thriving because of the reduced human activity that used to scare away wildlife and pollute ecosystems. The visual that is etched into my mind are the rivers in Venice, Italy. Because of the mandatory quarantine, no boats or gondolas were in use, and the rivers all over the water city cleared to a vibrant blue. It took me back to a trip there when I was 12, and how the waters were so green and muddy we joked that falling in would be a health risk. It was somewhat bittersweet to see this imagery, as it was beauty that was rare to see, and that it is rare because of us!

Photos taken of clear water in Italy, taken by @ikaveri on Twitter. 

In this same pandemic, we have also seen the red and orange skies of LA, filled with clouds and rainfalls of ash. This was heartbreaking for the world to witness, as we learned it was the cause of not some dreamy sunset or blood sun, but because of the massive forest wild fires that have devastated families and communities by burning down homes and making the air unbreathable in some places.

Photo credit: Brittany Hosea-Small / AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES

Photo by Josh Edelson / AFP VIA Getty Images

There is no quick fix for the climate and like all social issues, we need to be committed and address it from various angles. We need to vote in political representatives that acknowledge climate change as fact, which unfortunately is the first crucial step we must take unlike other democracies with the same quality of education and science. We need to then protest and put as much pressure as possible on local, state and national politics to enact policies that lead to reduced emissions. We must reduce the amount of influence and investments fossil fuel corporations receive from taxpayers, and invest federally into sustainable alternatives. Unfortunately, most Americans do not even realize how much their lifestyle destroys their land but also the global climate temperature. We need to create a social shift in attitudes around consumption in all forms and this starts with widespread education, so perhaps media and specifically social media is the strongest and quickest way to do this.

“If a few girls can get headlines all over the world just by not going to school for a few weeks, imagine what we could do together if we wanted to.”

I think this quote by Greta emphasizes the power of the people being unified and organized. When we are organized is when we are truly unstoppable and cannot be ignored by the appointed leaders that be. We outnumber them all. We need to organize and stay focused to make real and much needed change.

“Adults keep saying - We owe it to the young people to give them hope - but I don’t want your hope.

I don’t want you to be hopeful.

I want you to panic.”

- Greta Thunberg in her Our House is On Fire speech.

I think the discussion around Greta Thunberg and her activism is interesting and there are three camps with different receptions of her in online discourse. I think the first camp were responsible for her becoming a household name globally. People who felt overwhelmed about climate change, had made some attempts at doing their part, like only riding public transport and going vegan. The first camp mainly consists of the younger generations that were somewhat aware but overwhelmed with the amount of structural issues that contribute to climate change. They were the force that joined Greta at her strikes in Stockholm outside Swedish parliament, and the ones who organized strikes in their own home countries. The second camp, were those like me, who found out about her a bit later when a strong media buzz was already present and notably by media that did not intend to further her purpose and emphasize the importance of climate justice, but just used her for novelty, headlines and clickbait instead. Many marginalized people questioned some of Greta’s viral rhetoric that often spoke of her being “stolen of her childhood and dreams'' as we saw a European, well-off white girl, who was being invited to speak to the most influential politicians, embraced by Hollywood A-listers and was also being honored at protests around the globe for her strikes. What could she possibly know about struggle? We respected her passion for climate change, but convinced ourselves that she needs to scold politicians and those who actually hold power for change, so we carried on with our lives and continued to live in comfortable denial. The third camp consisted of active climate change deniers, and conservatives who weaponized her Asperger's and the fact that she was a young woman (can’t forget to add ageism and misogyny to edgy memes eh?) and aimed to assassinate her character and validity in the form of “jokes” and memes. The third camp often brought up her privilege not only as a critique, but as a means to silence her and the topic altogether. Many influential right-wing politicians, including Donald Trump, partook in this to distance their followers from having any interest in her, or climate justice.

“Greta Thunberg is the spark but we are the wildfire.” - Naomi Klein

As I mentioned earlier, Greta Thunberg’s book has taken away my criticisms of her global status. She has brilliant values, an in-depth scientific understanding of the subject she advocates for, and her emphasis on climate equity, which many white activists fail to acknowledge as an important factor, all made me a supporter of Greta. I do not care about the trolls and those who have tried to ridicule and minimize the honor in her life mission. She is probably one of the most inspiring individuals and change makers of my time. Her book and speeches have amazing rhetoric that unprogrammed a lot of my own learned helplessness about the environment. It also reminded me of my individual responsibility as well as my government's responsibility to stop global warming from happening and create a sustainable world. We need to put in the work, we only have so much time left before it is too late, whether we like that fact or not. Her stance that climate change is black and white is so effective and true: “either we reduce global emissions by 50%, or we do not.” It really is that simple. We need to activate so we can enact the needed solutions to meet that goal. Reading Thunberg’s book has inspired me to take more action and make more sustainable choices and unlearn a lot of U.S. consumerism culture. I have educated myself more throughout quarantine by learning about zero waste methods and the environmental benefits of veganism. However, while personal accountability is great, it is a form of privilege to be able to buy more sustainably, especially when the current market place mainly offers unsustainable products as the most affordable. We must also learn how to politically fight for actual policies and political change that force systemic and societal change .

“We have a new wave of contention in society that’s being led by women. … And the youth climate movement is leading this generational shift."

- Dana Fisher

In late 2019, The Washington Post conducted a poll that found that 46% of teen girls said the climate was “extremely important”, while only 23 % of teen boys said so. Furthermore, more than twice as many black and Hispanic teens participated in school strikes on climate change than their white peers, and girls were more likely to participate than boys. This data is one of several including Dana Fisher’s, a sociologist and researcher at the University of Maryland, who found similar ratios when studying the populations of activists and participants in the Washington, DC 2019 climate strike.

I think the ratio of who shows up for the environment points to social roles at large. The likelihood of caring about climate change can do with one’s privilege and ability to empathize with abstract or foreign problems that one may not be negatively affected with (right now). While we all hold some form of privilege, all women have experienced some form of sexism and misogyny, and therefore are more likely to be able to empathize with marginalized groups they do not belong to, and advocate for social movements that address injustices they may not themselves experience.

There is a correlation between those most marginalized in society, being the most active in social reform and revolution. Because when one is in the lowest or lower social casts of society, and has the least social freedoms and privileges, one has nothing to lose and everything to gain from change. This is why we can see in many social justice movements across the US, that black queer people and specifically black trans women, have consistently been at the forefront for important social progress.

When it comes to climate change, there is a certain amount of empathy required, especially when you live in a western country, or part of the world where you have an excess of resources at your disposal and you are comfortable with the status quo. That is something we all need to address and with that comes a checking of ego. Is my temporary happiness more important than other people’s well-being and lives? Am I contributing to the exploitation of people and the destruction of the planet? My planet?

I do not often see men on a large scale extending this type of self-reflection and empathy for social problems, either in small social settings or in positions of power. This is similar to how many men do not reflect on how it feels to be catcalled or sexually harassed as a woman. This is not because men are predisposed to be heartless rather, I believe this is a cause of social conditioning. Women are more conditioned to be team players, to listen and exercise great empathy at all times, otherwise she is socially scorned. Men are not expected to show these traits to the same extent, and often can rely on this lack of social standard and their own privilege to ignore social issues all together. We need to unlearn that issues women care about are insular to “women’s issues”, for they are societal problems, and we need to encourage and expect young boys and men to be equally accountable for a better world.

It is so inspiring to see so many young teens following Greta’s initiative, like Alexandria Villaseñor, who after experiencing an asthma attack during a wildfire in California, not only took the time to educate herself on the dangers of this phenomenon, but also organized Friday’s 4 Future strikes in NYC with the US Climate Strike group. Since then, she has also spoken at countless international conventions about climate change, and alongside Thunberg and 15 other youth activists, filed a legal complaint against UN nations who had not upheld their Paris agreement climate goals. This is so badass and I did not even know about this until today. In fact, there are countless teens all over the world, many of whom aren’t of legal voting age, who are suing local / federal governments and organizations for environmental malpractice and for jeopardizing their futures! 

As they should! Let’s all keep fighting for a better and sustainable future.

Students and youth striking in Seoul, South Korea. Photo credit: Chung Sung-Jun / GETTY IMAGES

Young people striking in Edinburgh, Scotland. Photo credit: Jeff J Mitchell / GETTY IMAGES

Youth striking in Hong Kong. Photo credit: Kim Cheung / AP PHOTO

[kidmachinate]

The Darkest Day

Yesterday will be a long remembered moment in history in which the United States of America proved how inept we really are. This is fact. While in no way shape or form forgiving the acts of yesterday, people like to point to the state the live in, the politics. They are keeping me down! There's merit to that. Especially here in South Florida. Heck Florida as a whole. Thing is...what have YOU done to change your scenario?

To blame these things is to be okay with sitting still. We did that. Probably more than we'd like to and COVID-19 still lingers. We found out just this past year, the average working class or poor person will get either scraps or nothing at all. Complaints with no effort are baseless ones. I'm all for hope and such but the message is wasted if one has become complacent. If you've done nothing since March, I'ma have a hard time believing your sob story.

"If you believe politicians of either party are gonna solve your problem, then you have just condemned yourself to a life of mediocrity." - Dave Ramsey

No one is here to bail you out. So what are you gonna do about it? Let mom and dad continue to do it? They might. Just don't make a future out of it. You'll never learn life lessons in the real world that way. Strive to succeed and give back. Gonna wait for that government bailout? Last I checked, you've gotta be rich, be a bank, or an airline for that. No one is coming from above to save you...which leads to a tired old theme, doesn't it?

You know what comes next, right? What better time to work on you in a time where it feels like the world just turned against us. This is gonna be much less of a point to people outside of the USA but striving to do better is something we can all benefit from.

I hate what I see out there but I'm finding peace along the way. Understanding that people don't always have your best interests in mind and you should allocate your time accordingly to ones that can help toward those interests. Even if not directly helping, a support system of sorts.

We should be mad at what happened yesterday, but before discussing politics on your social media platform of choice, I ask you this. Will the time spent there improve your life? If the answer is no, perhaps a plan for your better future is a better use of your time. Then you can go back to your social media response, you keyboard warrior you.

America. Where our priorities are shit and accountability is for pussies. Make a statement in your own life that trancencends the norm. We can feel alone but know when to summon for help and partake in some jolly cooperation from time to time.

[tangent101]

It’s interesting...

When you look at Electoral maps, most of the Republican states have their votes mostly counted now. Of the 23 States that have been declared for Trump, only one has only has under 80% of the vote counted, and 17 of them have 95% or more of the vote counted. And with all of that? There is a deficit of nearly 4,000,000 votes between Biden and Trump in favor of Biden. But California is still under 75% for its vote percentage counted, and only 7 Democratic states are at or above 95% of the vote counted.

My earlier estimate of the number of votes Biden will get over Trump may have been very pessimistic. Biden could very well blow Trump out of the water with 6,000,000 votes more counted for him than Trump. Even with all the lawsuits in the world, should Arizona and Nevada remain in Biden’s column, and especially if Pennsylvania goes for Biden... it is likely that the courts won’t support Trump’s effort to disrupt democracy and the Republican Party will accept what they got out of the election and walk away from Trump.

Things are still bad. Biden can’t do anything about the Supreme Court if the Republicans own the Senate, and they also ate into the Democratic Party’s hold on the House of Representatives. There are a lot of people out there (predominantly white) who have embraced racism, fascism, lying, and being hypocrites and who will continue to do so now that Trump has shown them that it’s “okay” to be a racist and fascist without repercussion. 

But things could be far worse. Enough of us came out to tell Trump “we will not go silently into the night.” And even if we have a lot of people who’d have quietly accepted their neighbors being shoved into gas chambers... we’ve seen the enemy. It is complacence. It is laziness. It is turning a blind eye. And if we refuse to let this stand, if we strive to ensure that our country turn away from fascism? We may stand a chance.

Or I suppose we can help each other and flee this sinking ship. We can go to Europe and other nations, and leave America to become a cesspool of shit as it was stated to have become in “V for Vendetta” - which is a very surprisingly appropriate movie given the state of affairs right now. We can let Trump and his ilk win in Making America White Again... and they’ll learn that without immigrants and without prison labor, America is nothing.

Because ultimately? We are what makes this (or any) nation “great” - no matter what the color of our skin, how neurotypical we are, where we are on the LGBTQ spectrum, or however else we differ from each other... for it is with our differences that we come together and create something new and better than before.

[mariosomething]

MISTAKES I MADE AS A COMIC OR NOTICED AS A BOOKER...

(NOTE: Never say never, but I can’t imagine getting back on stage again. However, now that comedy is returning to clubs--and potentially booming here in Austin--I think this is worth repeating. Especially #15. Enjoy!)

So, I might be hopping on stage again for my own, personal reasons. Number one being distraction from the crushing loneliness that comes with self-employment. Woo! On the first page of my newly-purchased comedy notebook, I started making a list of things I don’t want to do this time around. The comic I don’t want to be, should I continue performing. Getting in my own way with unfounded beliefs about my abilities or lack thereof. I will—NO DOUBT—repeat some of the following blunders out of muscle memory, and if you catch me doing so, by all means, call me out! In no particular order:

1- Worrying about who’s heard this bit before. One cure for this is to never stop writing new stuff. Also, it’s the JOB of a comedian to repeat the same shit with the same zeal and sincerity for different crowds…crowds that probably don’t attend comedy shows as often as we perform on them.

2- Worrying about making the comics laugh. This is still the hallmark of a great comic to me…the person we’ve all seen before but stop the chit-chat when they get on stage. It’s the opposite of a “crowd-pleaser.” In a perfect world, I can please both—as some do—but ultimately, we don’t get paid to make the back of the room laugh. If I’m building a half-hour, those comics may ‘check out’ during my set, and that’s to be expected. If I concern myself with their approval, I’m ignoring the audience, and by extension, disrespecting them. THEY bought a ticket. They deserve my best attempt.

3- Starting your act with a risky joke. Are there exceptions for these “rules” of mine? Absolutely. But they are just that…exceptions. This one always drove me nuts when I ran the Velv. Especially when the rest of one’s act is relatively benign! Would you lead with your “crazy” on a first date? Talk about all of your flaws on a job interview? Or with music you like…if I wanted to get you into Tom Waits, I’m not gonna recommend The Black Rider—an album only die-hard fans might appreciate. I’d start with something accessible, like Small Change or Rain Dogs. Get them on your side first with your palatable stuff, then give ‘em what you want. (Now go listen to Tom Waits’ Small Change and Rain Dogs.) 

4- Worrying about looking stupid. This is the big one for me. Even though I KNOW the audience WANTS us to look foolish; even while I KNOW they want us to be both vulnerable and confident about it, I have a crippling fear of embarrassment. And this is NOT a good quality for any comedian. I learned that words account for only 7% of communication. The rest is body language, facial expressions and tone. I’ve always hidden behind my words, and have given up on bits that require me to be more animated. So dumb. Which leads me to…

5- Not doing enough ‘act-outs’ in bits. When I watch amazing comedians, they all have this in common. They perform or act-out dialogue. More show than tell. They don’t just recite jokes or one-liners. Even Steven & Mitch & Todd do/did act-outs in their own, low-energy styles. When you start looking for them, they’re everywhere. So much rolling, sustained laughter derives from act-outs. They don’t have to be BIG, they just have to be well-delivered.

6- Writing what I think they might like, not what I like. Another big ‘duh’ but worth repeating. I fell in this trap on the road. I was lovingly told to “write a dick joke already!” when I was a new, quasi-clever comic. And man alive, did I ever make up for it! Some may have had a fake nose and mustache, but they were dick jokes nonetheless, and I wasn’t proud. But they got laughs, and more laughs meant better comment cards, which meant return visits. Awesome way to remain a road comic…shitty way to evolve or get industry to pay attention. It’s also a fast track to burnout. If you’re not doing stuff you like, resentment builds and ambition wanes.

7- Not having goals. A new, tight 10 minutes is my goal today. If that goes well, a new 30. Then maybe an album. When I DID have things to strive for, they “magically” happened. I kept comedy goal lists on my wall, and most came to fruition. Then I got in my head and stopped making those lists. The more I was learning about the biz, the more inadequate I felt. I stopped writing, stopped going to mics and eventually stopped touring. With no new goals, I lost steam and confidence. I was a competent middle, but a spotty headliner…THAT is my ceiling for now. I’d love to be a rock-solid, reliable closer with at least one killer album to show for it. It’s feasible, but I need to start with that initial aim of a new, polished, consistent 10 minutes that I like.

8- Not watching more pros. Something that baffles me about so many new comics. You have the option to catch A-list comedians for FREE at Cap City, your home club, etc…why would you not take advantage? You learn by watching pros, even if it’s what NOT to do. Or what’s being done to death. You can learn structure, pacing, opening and closing. I used to watch comics I knew I wouldn’t like, but came away with respect for how they did things. People forget or don’t know that the late, great Bill Hicks used to be a clean-ish, set-up/punch kinda comedian. He learned the rules so he can break them effectively. Even at his viscous best, he was still super-polished. It’s respect for the craft, dammit. All of your heroes have it.

9- Getting jealous of your friends’ progress. There is sooo much leap-frogging in this business, there’s no need to denigrate yourself for not keeping pace with a peer. “Comedy is the closest thing there is to justice,” according to Colin Quinn, and I 100% agree. If you’re funny, consistently funny, you will get work. Period. When producers run and book shows, they want reliability more than anything. There is no island of misfit-but-actually-brillant comedians out there, waiting to be discovered. Funny gets noticed by EVERYbody. If you’re not getting booked, start looking inward. Seriously. When Cap City demoted me from headliner, I didn’t fight it. I thought they were right to do so because I knew my 50 minutes was about 15 shy of reliable material. Challenge your beliefs about your own act. Maybe you’re better than you think, but maybe it’s just the opposite. It’s worth asking, “What am I doing wrong?” if you’re having trouble getting past open mics. Maybe you are indeed funny, but still too green or inconsistent. Maybe you had a bad showcase set and your friend killed. Your friend may get Montreal before you, but you might get a manager first. You just don’t know! Keep plugging away, because there’s too much out of your control.

10- Not being humble. Jeezus H. Christmas, where did all of this unearned confidence come from?? Not only will I never relate to this, I will continue to chastise and scoff at it. Don’t assume your shit is crushed fruit, especially when you’re new. Don’t trash talk other comics, it WILL bite you in the ass eventually. Or immediately in some cases. Don’t think you’re immediately entitled to the same things that other comics took years to obtain or achieve. There is always something to learn, even from people you disagree with…it’s the definition of being open-minded. There are comics I detest personally, but goddamn if they aren’t great performers/writers. And I’ll probably get push-back for this, but I never called myself a “comedian” until I was able to quit my day job. Until that happened, I was just a dude who “did comedy.” I wanted to earn that title, don’t you?? Skip the business cards and build your act.

11- Not taking chances on stage. I’ve heard from too many comedians that if you’re always killing up there, you’re not taking chances. When I booked a room, I wanted to reward comics who tried new stuff every open mic, or was tweaking it. If a comic kept going up with well-worn bits, I ignored them for a few weeks or longer, even if they got laughs. It’s open mic, the point is to experiment! When I worked the road, I stopped doing mics when I was back in town. Big mistake. I was afraid to try untested jokes in clubs on the road, and too lazy or complacent to take chances at open mics. I stunted my own growth. 

12- All agenda, no punchlines. I remember watching a well-known comic in NY struggle with Jesus jokes. He could NOT have been in a more welcoming arena for such, but he wasn’t funny, just angry. So he said, “Oh, I guess you guys don’t like religious jokes,” To which my friend replied, “We do! We keep waiting for one.” I think comedians can be the most insightful people on the planet, and the great ones don’t berate, they put funny first. It just makes sense! If you really really really want your message to be heard, then it’s in your best interest to make it funny. Funny cuts through. Or maybe you just wanna use the stage as a soapbox, in which case, quit comedy.

13- Not presenting both sides. I once told an established headliner he couldn’t return to the Velv, despite the numbers. In fairness to us, it was Valentine’s Day weekend, we were packed anyway. He never gave me a chance to explain why, but here’s why: he was too angry about women and wasn’t self-deprecating enough to balance it out. Conversely, I had a female comedian come through a couple of times, and the bulk of her act is male-bashing, BUT, it’s tight and well-crafted and funny as shit…AND she sprinkles in enough self-effacing humor so as not to divide the crowd. If the guy I banned was her parallel, I would’ve re-booked him. But I’m a freak about balance. While I don’t believe ANY person or group of people is above criticism, you can’t just point fingers at others while patting yourself on the back.

14 - Not putting more of ‘me’ in my act. Trends are fun as a reference, but full bits built around them have a tiny shelf life. It’s fluff and filler at best. Relationships will never be hacky. Aging will never get old. Folks! We all have specific quirks or approaches to life in general, why not explore those approaches? That’s when a ‘comic’ graduates to ‘comedian.’ When they stop saying funny things and start saying things funny. Not my line, but damn accurate.**

15- Knee-jerk hating and never asking WHY? Okay, this one’s a personal lament. When I found comedy, I found harmony. Anyone funny was welcome. I didn’t see us as men or women or gay or straight or black or white, we were comics, and I fucking loved it. We were equals from every walk of life, and no jerks allowed! I found a circle of curious, liberal-minded pals who were always asking why. Friends who would call out each other’s bullshit or hypocrisy or bad bits, then laugh about it at Mugshots. Friends who preferred brutal truth over blowing smoke. It was bliss for someone who values sincere feedback and funny, earnest people. Comedians we respect and adore are always challenging norms of behavior and tradition. Pryor, Chapelle, Carlin, Rock, of course, but even Larry David, who’s the king of offending people by rejecting small, societal niceties. 

I’m starting to see too much division and moral cowardice in comedy--on and off stage--and this is antithesis to its value, in my opinion. Everything I hated about high school. Cliques and whispers and spiteful exclusion. I will echo what I wrote earlier: NOBODY IS ABOVE CRITICISM. This is the salty to the sweet of “Everyone welcome.” Comedy is a LOT of failing, tons of real-time rejection, and that SUCKS. But if you think it has anything to do with anything but your act, you’re not asking Why. It’s easier to say, “Well, it’s clearly ‘cos I’m ________.” Really? Maybe it’s ‘cos you’re not funny, or not funny YET. Maybe it’s because you haven’t written a new joke in months, or refuse to change the ones that never work. Maybe you think there are no rules to comedy, and you can just get up there and people will love you because so-and-so does it that way. Maybe you don’t have so-and-so’s natural talent or likability. Or work ethic. Or self-awareness. If your first response is to blame a crowd, a booker, society, or whatever, ask yourself: are there successful comics who look like me? Why them and not me? What are they doing differently? My first guess is: they’re addicted to the craft so they keep their head down and write and tweak and fail and ask why and learn from mistakes. Stop complaining and start paying attention. At the end of the day, you and you alone are responsible for your career. If you believe women aren’t funny, I pity your ignorance and sheltered life. If you think men have it easier, tell that to the thousands of male comics who go nowhere in this business.

Maybe I’m an idealist hippy dippy doofus, but I believe that what we admire about others is pretty universal stuff. Regarding comedy, we all like someone who’s fearless on stage. Confident but not cocky. Capable. Quick. Genuine. Someone who keeps writing and honing their act. Someone who connects with people. Someone who comes back once a year with 30 new minutes. Someone who plows forward, not consumed with the opinions of others. Are these gender or race-specific qualities?? Hardly. And when you’re a top shelf, A-list comedian who’s paid their dues, it’s all preference at that level. It’s Gin vs. Vodka vs. Bourbon vs. Tequila, no one is “better” than the next. Maria Bamford is Bill Burr is Dave Chapelle is Carrot Top. They’re all pros who never stop working.

I’ll leave you with this…Comedy is a powerful and special thing, and I’ve always been crazy-grateful to be part of this tiny, uniquely rewarding world. Even if this experiment crumbles after a few months, even if I can’t vanquish some personal demons, it’s been a pursuit I’ve yet to regret. If you’re just starting out, or five years in, or going on the road, relish every minute. Meet all the people. Make all the friends. Get over your fears, get over yourself and get better. xoxo mario 

**This is how I first heard it. Comic/comedian or vice versa. You get it. Though I personally feel that “comedian” sounds more like an official title, while you can’t spell “comic” without “mic.” Just sayin’ is all.

[ororowrites]

“42 Reasons: Chadwick x OC: Chapter Two

Author’s note: I apologize for the long wait! Life catches up with us sometimes, I guess. I should be back on track now. Here are the previous chapters in case you need to re-read:

Synopsis - Introduction-Chapter One 

Warnings: Mentions of anxiety 

Two Weeks Later 

Atlanta would be Holly’s home for the next several months. Filming would begin in the next couple of weeks after their table reads and screen tests. She was still in shock and nothing had completely set in for her about her new endeavors. Fans did not know what they were about to receive and Holly was under lock and key when it came to her new job. She wasn’t even allowed to share the news with close friends or family until Marvel officially announced the cast for the Black Panther sequel. 

Holly was glad she at least knew Chadwick and had someone to lean on once they began the filming process. She had met some of the other cast members in passing but did not have a relationship with most of them. 

Her first day in Atlanta consisted of getting settled in her new apartment that Marvel was renting. Attempting to make it feel like home, Holly sent for some of her furniture and items that made her space feel warm and comfortable. While hanging some of her art, her elevator bell rang, signaling a guest. 

“Who is it,” Holly pressed the call button and spoke into the mic. 

“Take a guess,” a voice called back. 

“Hmmm, I don’t know. Denzel , Will...” Holly joked, beaming from ear to ear without even noticing. 

“Even better. Now open up unless you want me to keep all this chicken and waffles to myself,” the voice replied back. Holly could hear his grin through the door and ran to buzz him inside. 

“Chad, you know I don’t play with my food. Come in,” the actress buzzed, waiting for the doors to open before she snatched the greasy bags from Chad’s hands. 

“Knew that would get your greedy behind to the door,” Chadwick chuckled, placing a kiss on Holly’s cheek and helping her sort out their meals. The simple act seemed very natural, though Holly’s breath hitched in her throat when his lips touched her skin. 

“Thank you. You came right on time, I’m starving,” Holly said gracefully moving around the space to find plates and silverware. 

“Lucky you. This will probably be your last unhealthy meal until after the film,” he replied. 

“Says who,” the actress quizzed, cocking her head to the side. 

“Says me,” Chadwick winked. “I can even hook you up with my trainer. He kicks my ass but he’s good. That’s if you want to use him.” 

Holly grinned, “You calling me out of shape, Boseman? I’ve been boxing for the last few months. You need to watch what you say to me.” 

The two friends shared a laugh before Chadwick answered, “No, I’m not saying you’re out of shape. Just offering some fight training. Since we’ll probably by fighting side by side.” 

Holly took the clue right away. “Say you want to spend time with me. Geez,” the actress teased, honestly honored by the generous offer. This was one of the things she adored about Chadwick. He had a big heart and when he truly cared about you, he didn’t hesitate to show it. His warmth and gentle spirit made him even more attractive and made him a people magnet. Anyone that spent time around him commented on his humbleness. 

“That makes it a win-win situation. You get training and time with Chadwick. This offer is only on the table for 24 hours,” he beamed, impatiently waiting on an answer. 

“Yes, I’ll kick you ass, I mean, I’ll train with you. But if I die, you’re responsible. Got it,” Holly threatened, pointing her fork in Chadwick’s direction. 

Her co-star held his hands up in fake surrender, “Alright, deal.” 

“Let me get this last cheat meal in before you torture me,” Holly complained biting into a crispy chicken wing. “I’m going to miss you baby chicken wing. Mr. Boseman is a big meanie and will take away all my meat and put me on this wack diet. I’m sorry.” 

The Black Panther star’s boisterous laughter filled the semi-empty living room, echoing off the walls. “Leave me alone,” he said through cackles. 

Becoming tickled herself, Holly snickered until tears spilled over. 

A week later 

The process of becoming Ororo Munroe was not an easy task to take on for an actress. Ryan Coogler, the sequel’s director was very serious about presenting accurate representation of different African cultures, accents, traditions and even clothing. He traveled the continent soaking up as much knowledge as he could manage. Holly respected his drive and knew she would have to work extra hard to make his vision come to life. 

As soon as Holly got the word that she would be playing Storm, she began her own research journey in an attempt to become well versed on different cultures on the continent. She didn’t want to be ignorant about what she was getting herself into and that served as motivation to study and learn. Wanting to know her own background, Holly ordered a DNA kit to study her lineage. 

Today, the cast was meeting for their last chemistry tests. Ryan did not put up with complacency. He wanted his actors to always better themselves and strive to be more. Holly and Chadwick were up first since they were the leads in the next film. The acting pair began with Ororo and T’Challa’s third scene that took place in a Harlem apartment. 

“Aight, we’ll start on page 3 and go through page 4,” Ryan called out to his actors. They followed orders and turned their scripts to the 3rd page of the second act. “Annnd, action.” 

“Ororo, come back to Wakanda with me,” Chadwick began, getting into characters immediately. 

“I have a life here. I can’t pick up and go,” Holly read, trying a new voice for her character. Ryan didn’t seem to mind the change as he knew the perfect fit for Ororo Munroe would take practice.

“Your life hasn’t always been here,” he continued, moving in closer. “I don’t think you want it to remain here.” 

“What makes you think that,”Holly said, her eyes meeting Chadwick’s as she took on Ororo’s quiet sex appeal. 

Closing the space left between them, Chadwick placed a hand on her cheek. Moving his face closer like the script demanded, “You aren’t happy and you’re running.”

Even though it was just acting, Holly somehow felt the double meaning in Chadwick’s words. This was the exact situation  that got them in trouble while filming ‘42′. Things got too real and it made separating reel from real difficult. When Chadwick became a character his entire being changed. The only problem was, T’Challa and Ororo could be interchangeable with Chadwick and Hoilly, which complicated things. 

“I’m not running from anything,” the actress whispered, feeling the heat from Chadwick’s body engulf her space. Their lips touched as they both juggled their acting and attraction. When their lips connected, Holly tried to stay in character but her mind drifted. His lips felt soft and warm against hers and she couldn’t shake the butterflies forming in her stomach. When he pulled away her lips were still parted. 

“Cut! Nice job, the chemistry is exactly where I need it to be,” Ryan complimented. “But...you have to tone it down a lil.” 

Chadwick and Holly chuckled, “Sorry,” Holly blushed, taking the hint that their onscreen kiss was a little too hot for a Marvel film. “Gotta do it for the kids.” 

“Hey, that was all you,” Chadwick laughed, wrapping an arm around Holly’s shoulders. “Chill out, Raye.”

“Dude, hush.” Going back and forth with each other, the two leads caught the eyes of a few of their cast mates. Their old romance began the same way. Without either of them noticing until things became too heavy to ignore. Cast mates and crew saw the small interactions and felt the chemistry. Some even teasing them occasionally. Now they had come full circle, only to repeat what had began years ago. 

The Black Panther sequel was officially in production and Holly’s nerves couldn’t have bothered her enough. With this being her first gig in years after the scandal on her previous job. 

Holly had to wake up at 2 AM for hair and makeup that would take more than a couple of hours to perfect. Like many trailers, the space was full of makeup products neatly organized against one wall and hair products on the other side. In between there were different variations of wig glues, eyelash glue and a few random items like stress balls and a bag of licorice. It looked like any other makeup trailer on a set but the vibe was different. 

Tiffany and Nadine Landry were a sister duo who had been working in the business for years. They made anyone who sat in their chairs feel like family which was one of the main reasons Ryan and crew wanted to keep them around. Their positive energy and talent to match spread throughout the cast and crew, contributing to the mass success of the first film. 

Holly was greeted by the sisters with a warm embrace and jokes. “We are here to make you the best Ororo Munroe that Marvel has ever seen,” Nadine said, gently pushing Holly towards Tiffany’s chair. 

“Nay, that was shady. Be nice,” Tiffany answered, calling her big sister out on the obvious shade to the previous Storm before the Disney deal was completed. “Don’t mind her Holly, she’s a mess but your face will be beat after you leave her chair.” 

“I trust you two. Besides, you have Ryan and Kevin to answer to if I walk out of here looking like a BAPS reject.” All three women slapped hands in laughter. 

The actress relaxed into the chair as Tiffany massaged her scalp, loosening the thick curls towards the crown of Holly’s head. 

Five hours and many looks later, the team had finally completed the new Ororo Munroe. The original hair and makeup options got trashed once Tiffany and Nadine slightly altered their initial plan for Holly. 

They settled on a straight, mid-back length wig and a neutral makeup palette that didn’t overpower the blue contacts and white wig.  

The big reveal came when Chadwick was brought into the trailer to see his co-star who had completely been transformed into the future Queen of Wakanda. 

When he stepped into the trailer, the actor’s laughter filled the small space as his excitement grew. Clapping his hands, his smile spread from ear to ear. “Look at you,” he exclaimed, gazing in awe. She was beautiful on any day, but there was a certain glow and confidence she was giving off. 

“Do I look good enough to be your Queen, T’Challa,” Holly teased dramatically, flipping her white locs. 

“You may outdo me in my own movie. Ya’ll trying to make me look bad,” Chadwick accused. 

“She makes it easy,” Nadine added, squeezing Holly’s shoulders, “She slays naturally. Sorry Chad.” 

Chadwick’s toothy grin widened. “Clearly.” His eyes fell to Holly, their gazes holding each other longer than they should. Look away, look away, Holly’s mind screamed, but her hormones were already betraying her. Those eyes were captivating and she couldn’t look away until Tiffany and Nadine interrupted. 

“Alright, out you go, Boseman. We need to finish her up before set call,” Tiffany gently pushed the actor towards the trailer door. “You can admire her when we send her out for your first scene.” 

Holly chuckled when Chadwick complained about how he was being treated by the crew. “That man is something else,” the actress shook her head.

“That man is feeling you,” Tiffany sang lowly but loud enough for Holly to hear. Today, she decided to ignore the truth and waited for the subject to change. Here we go, she thought. 

Later that day, when Holly had a small break in her schedule, she was faced with a situation and person she thought she had escaped. One of the old executives from the network she worked under years ago, was making a set visit. Supposedly, he was working for Marvel Studios under the same position. Holly’s stomach immediately dropped to her feet. There was no where to running, forcing the actress to face her fears in panic. Feeling helpless, Holly took off towards her trailer, praying no one saw the tears streaking her cheeks. 

Slamming the trailer door shut, Holly tried to take a few deep breaths. Ben Wiseman was a person she wanted to avoid for the rest of her life. He was responsible for a very dark time in her life and career, driving her to almost end it all to escape the pain. Ben was a Devil in a fancy suit and charming smile. Power and money made him untouchable and people flocked to him because of his title and reputation in the industry. Holly knew the man behind the suit and it put great fear in her heart that he’d been working right under her nose. 

The air in the trailer thickened causing the actress to take shorter breaths, making her panic more due to the heaviness of her chest. Over the last several months, Holly was able to keep her panic attacks to a minimum. After enrolling in yoga/meditation classes, she was able to learn different techniques to manage her stress. Counting to ten in her head Holly attempted to control her breathing and put her mind and spirit in a more positive realm. 

It took Holly 20 minutes to get back into a good place and for her breathing to calm. Going back outside meant risking running into Ben, though there was no way to avoid him. She gave herself a pep talk, prayed and dried her eyes before leaving the trailer. 

“There you are,” Chadwick said, walking up to the trailer with two cups of coffee in his hands. “Figured you’d need a little pick me up before we head back. Hey, you alright?” 

Worry was written all over Holly’s face, though she nodded with a fake smile, “Yeah, I’m good. Fell asleep in my trailer and woke up a bit confused.” 

“You sure, looks like you’ve been crying,” Chadwick pressed, holding the foam cup in her direction. 

“I’m sure, geez,” Holly faked laughter, doing a terrible job of hiding the pain in her voice. 

Chadwick was not buying her act and wasn’t going to allow his friend to go on with her day without getting to the bottom of this. “Raye,” he replied, his tone serious. Holly hung her head in defeat. “You want to go somewhere and talk? We have a few minutes before call.” Holding out his hand, Chadwick waited for Holly to accept it before leading her back to the trailer. 

I will begin working on the next chapter tomorrow, so it won’t be another month until I post again. lol Let me know of you want to be added to the taglist. 

Taglist: @wakanda-shit-is-that @lavitabella87 @destinio1 @airis-paris14 @babygirlofwakanda @siriuslycollins

[witchywomenrool]

For witches with self-doubt

Opening Wounds.

I grappled with why this week was titled “opening wounds” flipping back and forth between the readings, the talk about Taino roots, and the Blackboard heading staring back at me.

I used to find museums as a safe place of solace, but after interacting with them below the surface level, they are riddled with significant issues.

As someone who is about to graduate with a master’s degree in museum studies, I was particularly drawn to the ideas of curation, archiving, and performance art and the overwhelming amount of anger that bubbled up in me while thinking about the way GLAM(Gallery, library, archive, museum) institutions handle social issues and personal narratives. The idea of Othering people of color for the sake of entertainment or an exhibit is revolting in every way. I’m going to sound like a crazy liberal but I’m going to say it:

As a future museum professional- if you are not a part of the solution, you are the problem.

People are not exhibits. Museums are usually wrong about history. If a museum is not actively trying to decolonize, they are pro-colonization. Museums should be places for positive social change.

I have had too many classes that we have discussed whether museums should be safe spaces, what to do with “controversial” history such as Confederate statues, and if we should keep stolen bodies in collections because they are “good to study”. I cannot even fathom any of these topics being up for “debate”. Museums should not be places that you pick and choose which side of history to display and should strive to make the world a better place, even if you are located in a conservative community.

I cannot imagine supporting an institution that aims to dehumanize and minimize the experiences of humans and I will fight to fix the system from the inside out. If it cannot change, I will act as a strong anti-museum activist and hope it crumbles.

As someone who is continuously shoved into a metaphorical closet, I cannot imagine being complacent with seeing others being treated as less than. Anyone who has had an inner struggle with self-acceptance can relate to being an outsider and when given a chance for power should do whatever they can to empower those who do not have a voice.

I feel like because of my personal experience, I feel passionately about improving museums. I am intertwining my own narrative as a form of auto-historia teoria by trying to support those who have been silenced. I feel like maybe my mission for doing a master’s degree was to not become a person who works at a museum but instead a person who challenges museums for the better and I cannot imagine a better reason to get a degree.

This is for all the witches who have struggled with self-doubt, you are worth it.

[chittychittypewpew]

The Importance of SELF-IMPROVEMENT vs AGE???

Ever since we were young, we were told to excel in everything if I may say. Focus on getting good grades and acing all the exams. And because all of it is directed more toward academics, we tend to forget the aspect of self-improvement and personal development that play an equally important role in people's lives.

It often goes unnoticed. We are either conveniently brushing our shortcomings under the carpet, refusing to face them, or just happy being ignorant. And the truth is that you can't run away from yourself. The farther you run, the deeper grave you were digging for yourself. Because all the unresolved emotions will come up and leave you overwhelmed. 

So, what should you do? Start with consciously becoming more aware of what you need, and what your feelings were try to tell you. observing your thoughts, emotions, and responses makes it all an integral part of your life.

Just the way learning should never stop, the same applies to self-improvement. The idea should focus on continuous Self-development at every stage in our life. And you will never know that you discovered within the layer of yourself, all become a better version of yourself. 

Here are a few reasons why self-improvement is important irrespective of your age:

Increase Self-Awareness

We spend most of our time getting to know other people and solving their issues. If only we spent that much time knowing ourselves, things would have been so much more different. Isn’t it?

The first ever step of self-improvement requires you to become more self-aware and get to know yourself better. It makes you question yourself and face reality for what it is, however harsh it might be.

Self-awareness is an ongoing journey – as life progresses, you are met with different experiences and challenges, which make you more aware of your personality, thoughts, and feelings. So, to be on the path of self-improvement, it is important to never lose touch with yourself.

Step out of Comfort Zone

The comfort zone is a dangerous place to be in. It surely feels good, but it also denotes stagnancy and where there is stagnancy, you can never find growth.

Choosing to work on improving yourself requires you to step out of your comfort zone. It lets you face your fears, try new things, take risks and challenge yourself. There will be times when you will discover a new side of your personality but there will also be times when you will fail.

Don’t let those failures bog you down. The fact that you tried should motivate you to never get complacent and too comfortable in familiar spaces because as they say, life begins outside your comfort zone.

Improve Mental Health

One of the biggest importance of self-improvement is the big positive impact it has on mental health. When you work on yourself, you get to know yourself better which lets you deal with your thoughts and emotions more effectively. You begin to understand why you are experiencing certain emotions and learn how to tackle them with time.

Someone who is not self-aware and not focused on improving themselves will have absolutely no control over their reactions which can lead to added stress and anxiety. Being in denial is never the answer.

Sense of Purpose

Deciding to walk the path of self-improvement and personal development gives your life purpose and meaning. Why is that important, you ask? It’s because it helps you stay focused on your life goals, makes you feel alive, and keeps you motivated. It improves mental and physical well-being by keeping you on the right track.

With a sense of purpose, you learn to accept all the challenges that come along the way because you have your eyes set on what really matters – the ‘bigger picture.

So The bottom line, you take this enriching journey of self-improvement in a positive light. The idea is not to get demotivated along the way and lose hope. You should instead take full responsibility for yourself and strive to go beyond your preconceived notions that might be limiting you and this can only be achieved with constant self-improvement.

So, whether you are a retired 67-year-old or a 36-year-old who is just starting off a new path in your career  – remember that you will always be a work in progress and there can never be an end to learning about yourself. That is what makes life purposeful and fun!!!

These are my top best self-help books to read : 

Atomic Habits by James Clear,  “Habits are the compound interest of self-improvement.” — James Clear 

The Subtle Art of Not Giving A F*uck by Mark Ronson, “Who you are is defined by what you’re willing to struggle for” — Mark Manson

You are a BADASS by Jen Sincero, “You are responsible for what you say and do. You are not responsible for whether or not people freak out about it.” ― Jen Sincero

[mrsblackruby]

Punitive justice let’s abuse fester.

Systematic abuse is abuse

What I think anon doesn’t realize is by actively choosing complacency and supporting our current “justice” system. You are already passively and impassively allowing a lot of people to roam free as they directly contribute to the suffering of others. It’s an Inherent factor to punitive systems.

Why have so many chosen to settle for suffering instead of putting the effort and hard work into attempting to make amends. You don’t have to forgive anyone but why must we disregard someone’s autonomy. When they no longer pose a threat to anyone?

We’ve been through so much.

We understand so little.

I refuse to jump on the bandwagon we need to make life unbearable for others no matter what they’ve done. We can’t rewrite the past. When will the human race desire more than to see others suffer. When will we give ourselves a chance?

When will we strive to form community? When will we acknowledge the failure but that failure isn’t the only possibility though it may feel that way sometimes. That an outcome may have been cruel even immoral. That we failed to understand why painful events unfolded. The best we can do is try not to recreate such events. Start laying down the foundations to try to avoid it. Find the cause we might not be able to see on the surface. We won’t be able to that without taking as many perspectives into account as possible (especially those of the effected persons) . Blame is a dangerous game. One man can very well be the catalyst. But we already know There’s not much a man can do in a desert alone. So why are we scared to look at the factors and see if that’s what should change instead not just the man. Why do we continue to cling onto solutions that if we’re being honest contributes to our problems? Why don’t we chase after one of the only things we know stays the same which is things change? Why don’t we rush into the unknown and uncertainty because there’s always a chance things turn out better? Safety will never be guaranteed in life but we can try to garner it!we don’t have to run away from it.

Why must all we look forward to be shame instead of hope?

And if I’m alone in this then so be it.

But from the bottom of my heart I wish everyone the best.

When will we stop denying ourselves the guidance and tools we need to hopefully achieve a better quality of life?

I don’t want to be a person who falls in line or deceives myself into thinking prison is there to benefit me instead of maintain human suffering. It screws us all it almost certainly denies us a chance to end people’s self described suffering! bad/good people don’t exist only people do.

As long as there is one slave the entirety of the human race will never know freedom.

“I'm sorry that we have a society that doesn't provide adequate support to people like you. I'm sorry our justice system is not oriented toward the needs of victims.” What I need is people to do things like that behind fucking bars so no one else has to experience it. What I need is a justice system that brings people who do those things to justice. Not to let them roam free and hurt people again and again and again. What is keeping those men you’re talking about from doing it again? From taking someone else’s livelihood away? Nothing.

Call me crazy, but I don't think prisoners deserve to be raped either.

What you refer to as justice is actually punitive justice, which is what we have now. The idea behind punitive justice is that punishment = justice. It's "an eye for an eye," the idea that the way to repay a victim for a crime is to create equivalent harm to the perpetrator. Except, I'm sorry to say, seeing another person suffer has never cured PTSD. Seeing someone suffer has never undone suffering that already occurred.

Reparative justice is victim-centered. It asks "what actions would create the best outcomes for the victim and would prevent others from being similarly victimized?" It provides mental health resources and other monetary support to people recovering from trauma. It looks for systemic issues that allowed the crime to occur - is an abusive environment being fostered? Are there oversights not being properly maintained? How did we as a society fail these people? It determines the best course for rehabilitation for the perpetrator, how to keep them away from potential victims. It is not "let them roam free and keep hurting people," but it's also not needlessly cruel for the sake of punishment, because punishment is not the point and because subjecting perpetrators to trauma makes them more dangerous, not less.

Again, I'm sorry you're feeling so bad today that you feel the need to lash out at others. Most people who do harm to others are in pain, but that doesn't make the harm okay. Please reconsider the way that you are projecting your pain into the world. It may feel gratifying in the moment, but ultimately it makes you feel worse.